Upstage

The final dress rehearsal for a musical adaptation of classic Emily Brontë novel Wuthering Heights reimagined in Mount Tarawera, quickly turns into every performer's worst nightmare. The show is plagued by setbacks, wardrobe malfunctions, forgotten lines, and mistranslated lyrics. The cast muddles through, hoping this shambles of a production will hold together — as the old saying goes, "the worse the dress rehearsal, the better opening night". Written, directed and composed by musical theatre director Michael Nicholas Williams, the film draws inspiration from his own rehearsal experiences.

The script was an unproduced musical I’d written a few years prior and when I started saying out loud that I thought I’d quite like to make a movie, a lot of people were eager to join in. It was the most fun I’ve had working.

– Writer/director Michael Nicholas Williams on Upstage, Bowel Cancer Foundation Trust website, 6 April 2019

Key Cast & Crew

Lyndee-Jane Rutherford

As: Luce Kent

Lloyd Scott

As: Benny Barker

Jonathan Morgan

As: Mabel Fa'afafine

Emma Kinane

Producer, As: Charlie Boyd

Darren Young

As: Matt Lee

Michael Nicholas Williams

Director, Writer, Producer, Composer, As: Stephen Herbert